Just Say You're in Love
by grayroze
Summary: Newt goes to Ilvermorny after being expelled from Hogwarts, and this time he is determined not to get too close to anyone. Percival knows what he wants, and he won't let anyone distract him from his goals. Tina and Queenie have other ideas, and nothing really goes according to plan.


**Notes: I've had this story saved in my documents for ages and figured I might as well post it. Warning: shameless use of cliches and romantic tropes ahead. Enjoy :)**

Percival Graves was not in love with Newt Scamander. Nope. Not at all. They were just friends. No, not even friends really, they were acquaintances. Yes, that's what they were. Acquaintances.

Percival would smile at Newt every time he passed him in the halls, and he would help him with homework every now and then, and he would sit with him at breakfast, and lunch, and yeah, usually dinner too. He would study with Newt in the library, and sit together and play chess in the evening, and sometimes they would go for walks on the grounds during the weekend. He would even (occasionally) skip class to help Newt smuggle an injured magical creature into the school, despite the fact that if they were caught they would both get expelled.

Yes, because that's what good acquaintances do. And, okay. If the two of them stay up in the student lounge all night talking, it's only because between Newt's passion for saving magical creatures and Graves' passion for justice and magical law, they managed to come up with a pretty solid plan to implement new restrictions on the hunting and collecting of magical creatures. Once Percival becomes the Director of MACUSA and Newt becomes a world famous magizoologist, that is.

Okay, so maybe they're friends. But, not like, close friends.

And then when rumors start flying around that the two of them are dating, Newt just laughs it off and Percival does too. Because it's funny, and under no circumstances does he maybe kind of want those rumors to be true.

"Just talk to him!" Tina, a fourth-year Thunderbird, and pretty much Percival's only friend, had suggested on several occasions.

"All I do is talk to him!" He had protested, and Tina had shot him a glare that clearly said, "You are an idiot, and you know what I meant".

"He won't hate you or anything, you know." She replied.

"Of course, he wouldn't. Why would he? I'm delightful."

"Percy, the world won't end if you tell him how you feel!" Tina snapped, and he grit his teeth.

"I don't feel anything," He insisted, "And even if I did, which I don't, the world would definitely end."

Tina had rolled her eyes and marched off to class, leaving him behind to pine away until he died.

Newt Scamander was _not_ in love with Percival Graves. He was not in love with the way he parted his hair (to the left), or the color of his eyes (dark brown), or the way he walked around with a confidence that Newt would never possess. Or the soft way spoke to Newt and the blunt way he spoke to everyone else, or the way he could talk for hours about complex legal procedures that Newt didn't understand, or the way he listened attentively when Newt droned on and on about his creatures, or the way he was always willing to help his fellow students, even if he pretended otherwise, or the way he always smiled at Newt whenever he saw him... What was the point of this? Oh yeah, he's not in love. Nope. Definitely not.

Well, maybe a little.

"Talk to him." Tina growled. She was a fellow Thunderbird, and a friend of Percy's. She was generally very nice, if a bit bossy at times.

"I can't! He'll hate me! Or worse, he'll pity me." Newt answered miserably. Tina closed her eyes and took a deep breath.

"No. He won't. Trust me on this." She said, as calmly as possible. Newt hesitated for a second before shaking his head.

"I'm sorry. I can't risk it. He's my best friend." He said, gazing despondently at the floor. Tina made a high-pitched choking sound and walked away. Newt watched her go, feeling guilty.

Defense Against the Dark Arts class was probably Percival's best subject. Except for magical law, of course, but unfortunately there wasn't a magical law class offered at Illvermorny. Not yet anyway. That would be one of the first things Percival intended to fix once he worked for MACUSA.

Nevertheless, in his opinion, Defense was the easiest class by far, and he never had issues casting spells. Until recently, that is. The past couple of weeks had been dedicated to practicing the Patronus Charm; an incredibly tricky spell that required no small amount of concentration and proficiency in spell casting. Not to mention a few powerfully happy memories.

Percival had the first two down pat, he'd been performing sixth year spells before he had even started attending Illvermorny; a side effect of having aurors for parents. Unfortunately, while he had the skills, he was sadly lacking in the powerfully happy memories department.

It's not that Percival had a bad childhood… but he certainly didn't have any lovely memories of his mother baking cookies, or of his father playing catch with him, or whatever normal people do. Mostly the memories of his childhood pre-Illvermorny involved reading law books and listening to his parents argue.

Once he started attending Illvermorny, however, things started to look up. It was certainly a more relaxed and entertaining environment. Even still, Percival only had a few friends, two to be exact. One of them was a nosy, irritating witch, and the other was a shy boy with a penchant for rescuing injured animals.

Not exactly the stuff of fairytales, but if one thing could be said of Percival, it's that he was a stubborn bastard, and by Merlin he was going to cast the Patronus Charm if it killed him.

"Concentrate, Percival." Professor Wynn suggested dryly as she stalked by. Percival clenched his jaw and bit back a retort. He was convinced the old hag was enjoying watching him struggle.

Percival took a deep breath and furrowed his brow in concentration. Happy memory, happy memory, happy memory. Sitting in sun in his mother's garden after being trapped inside all winter. Getting his wand. Stepping into Illvermorny for the first time. Going to his Aunt's house for spring break and helping her repaint all the walls in her house blue while listening to the radio. He concentrated, rebuilding every detail of his memories before casting the charm, yet again.

" _Expecto Patronum_ ," He whispered, and a small, bluish wisp fluttered from the end of his wand. "Why is this so difficult!"

"Having trouble?" Tina asked casually, a slivery porcupine swimming through the air by her head. Of course Tina was here, and of course she had already managed to cast a corporeal Patronus.

"No." He answered curtly, turning his back on her and her glittery porcupine.

"Really? Because it seems like you're having trouble." Tina pressed cheerfully.

"Yes, thank you for your input, Goldstein." Percival said. Tina, apparently unable to take a hint, or more likely _unwilling_ to take a hint, walked over to watch him attempt to cast the spell.

"You're trying too hard." She supplied, unhelpfully.

"Shut up, Goldstein. Or, better yet, go away." He shot back.

"You're thinking too much about it." Tina insisted, and Percival gave up.

"Fine. What do you suggest I do differently? Hmm?" He bit out. A satisfied smile spread across her face.

"You're concentrating too much on your memories, you need to focus on the _feelings_ your memories bring." Tina explained, patiently. Percival stared at her blankly.

"The feelings."

"Yes, feelings. You have those, right? Focus less on the details, more on the warm, fuzzy feelings." Tina said.

Percival sighed and swallowed a sarcastic retort. Reluctantly, he shut his eyes and flipped through his memories. Less detail, more feeling.

He thought about staying with his Aunt. He remembered the exact shade of blue that they painted the walls, and that his Aunt's hair had been wavy and black, and so long it hung almost to her knees.

It had rained the entire time he visited her, and the roof of her house had leaked, so they had to leave buckets around the house to catch the drips of water. He had tripped over the buckets countless times and spilled water all over the floor, but his Aunt just laughed every time and helped him clean it up, rather than yelling at him like his parents would have.

They had listened to the radio as they painted, the soft jazz music echoing throughout the whole house. In the evenings, his Aunt had hummed as she made dinner for them in the kitchen, and he remembered they sat down and ate dinner together, talking and laughing. She had asked him questions and listened to his answers.

One day, when he had asked why she didn't use magic to paint the walls, she had told him that sometimes magic couldn't solve everything, that learning to do things with your own two hands was an invaluable skill many wizards lacked. She had been wise and kind, with an unexpectedly mischievous sense of humor. He remembered she had made him feel welcome, and comfortable enough to be himself. He remembered it had felt like having a real family.

And three months after that he remembered standing outside in the pouring rain, his parents standing stoically by his side as they lowered her casket into the ground.

Percy snapped his eyes open. Tina gazed at him expectantly, waiting for him to cast the spell.

"I can't." He confessed.

"What happened? Did you focus on feeling?" Tina asked.

"Yes." He answered quietly, "How do you focus on the good feelings though?"

A flicker of sympathy passed across her face.

"Well," Tina started, then stopped and seemed to think for a moment. "Maybe you shouldn't think about your past memories, maybe you should try thinking about the future." She suggested, hesitantly. Percival frowned.

"What do you mean?"

"Try and create a memory. Imagine a happy future." She said. Percival looked doubtful, but closed his eyes again and tried to build a happy future.

The future. That was easy to imagine, Percival spent 80% of his time think about what he was going to do once he became the Director of MACUSA. The other 20% was dedicated to homework. He spent long hours working out plans to implement new laws that would greatly help magical America. He would be hard working and dedicated to his cause. He would work tirelessly to fix society's problems, starting with creating a Magical Law course at Ilvermorny, then eliminating the law against no maj/wizard relationships. He would also implement and enforce the laws against magical beast trafficking that he and Newt had planned out in extensive detail.

He was going to help Newt write a book to educate their fellow wizards on magical beasts. That was something he had agreed to help with only after a lot of begging and bribery on Newt's part. Percival was willing to help stop the unfair treatment of the animals, but he didn't have the same passion and curiosity for them that Newt did.

He had only agreed to help with the book after Newt had given him _that look_. The wide-eyed, kicked puppy look that made Percy want to wrap him in a blanket and protect him from the world and its cruelties.

 _"Alright, fine. But, I'll only help you publish it, I'm not going to help you do research and all that." Percival had agreed grudgingly, one late night they had spent talking and arguing in the student's lounge._

 _"Awww, but just imagine it! We could travel the world together! Meeting new animals and learning about them! Saving magical beasts in need! Experiencing new things! Trying new foods!" Newt had said, gesticulating wildly as he spoke, and nearly hitting Percy, who was sitting inches away from him on the large red couch._

 _"Okay, okay!" Percival said, throwing up his hands to protect his face. "Calm down, I see your point!" He said, and Newt immediately stopped moving._

 _"Sorry." Newt said._

 _"It's fine. I don't understand why you'd want to travel around with me though." Percival said. Newt frowned in confusion._

 _"Why wouldn't I? You're my best friend, Percy. I mean, unless you don't want to be friends with me, which I-I can understand. And you probably wouldn't want to go anywhere with me, that makes sense- sorry, I didn't think about that." Newt stammered out an apology, refusing to meet Percival's eyes as he did._

 _"What?! No! That's not what I meant at all! I just meant that I'm not the most pleasant person to live with, I didn't mean—damn it! That's not what I meant! Of course you're my friend, and I would happily follow you anywhere you wanted to go." Percival tripped over his words trying to console Newt. Newt, for his part, watched him with surprise, a tentatively hopeful smile spreading over his face._

 _"Really? So… you would help me write my book?" He asked, and Percival couldn't do anything other than nod. Newt beamed at him, looking so eager and optimistic that it almost hurt to look at._

 _"That's wonderful!" He exclaimed, and collapsed against Percival, resting his head on his shoulder. "We're gonna change the world, Percy." Newt hummed contentedly, and Percival was too distracted by having Newt pressed against his side to reply._

 _"Yeah. We are." Percival had whispered eventually, but Newt had long since slipped into slumber._

 _Percival sat there, Newt's hair tickling his cheek, his arm going numb under the sleeping boy's weight, and a warm, sleepy contentedness spreading through his chest. Percy rested his head against Newt's and let his eyes slide shut._

"Um, Percy?" Tina asked, her voice breaking through the memory.

Percival opened his eyes and was startled for a moment to discover he was still in class, his fellow students spread around the room, casting charms and laughing.

"You okay?" Tina asked him. Percival nodded, the warm, pleasant feeling from the memory still sitting in his chest. "You want to try again?" Tina asked, hesitantly. Percival nodded again, and for the first time he had a feeling that the spell would work.

Percival took a deep breath, and in a confident voice that captured the attention of everyone in the room, he said, " _Expecto Patronum_!"

A silvery figure burst from his wand and floated through the air around him. He had done it! He conjured a corporeal Patronus!

The glowing guardian was small compared to the others Percival had seen, but as it drifted by, he realized that was because it was a lizard. His Patronus was a lizard. Percival frowned. That somehow seemed anticlimactic. Beside him Tina burst into a fit of giggles.

"What?" Percival snapped, as she doubled over, gasping for breath. "What?!" He demanded. Tina shook her head and clapped him on the shoulder.

"It's a newt." She said gleefully, before walking away, still laughing. And, oh. Oh. That was going to be a bit harder to explain away.

By dinner time there everyone in the entire school had heard about what had happened in defense class. Everyone, that is, except for one Newt Scamander who had spent the day skipping his classes to care for an injured Woden.

It was a small bird with downy blue wings and a fuzzy gray underbelly. It bore a striking resemblance to non-magical bluebirds, except for the short, elephant-like trunk it had in place of a beak. Newt had found the poor thing lying on the ground in the woods when he had been doing research for a herbology project. Newt guessed that it was a baby that had fallen out of its nest, judging by its size and temperament. Most adult Wodens were incredibly aggressive towards humans, but the younger ones could be reasoned with.

In any case, Newt had been too busy smuggling the bird into his dorm room, then tending to its broken wing to actually go to class or interact with his peers.

"There you go, baby." Newt whispered, patting the bird on the head and tucking it into the small pile of blankets he had put together underneath Percival's bed. Newt would have put the Woden under his own bed, but the blind kneazle he'd been caring for the past couple of weeks would have definitely eaten the bird. Not to mention the Thunderbird head girl, Seraphina Picquery, would have reported him had he attempted to hide another creature in his room. Luckily, Newt knew how to get into the Horned Serpent dorm rooms so that wouldn't be an issue.

The Woden (that Newt had temporarily named Hermes), chirruped happily and wrapped his trunk around Newt's finger before settling down to sleep.

"Good boy. I'll come back to check on you later." Newt reassured it, and stood up to leave for dinner, quickly making sure that the bed sheets fell to the floor and adequately hid Hermes from the view of any passers-by.

Newt made his way down to the dining hall, wondering idly what to feed Hermes. He knew that adult Wodens mainly ate insects and berries, but he wasn't sure about the nutritional needs of the chicks. He'd have to go to the library and do some more research.

"Newt! Over here!" Tina called to him, waving from across the room as soon as he stepped into the brightly lit dining hall. Newt waved back, making his way over to the table where Tina, her younger sister Queenie, and a grumpy looking Percival, were sitting.

"Hello, Tina. Queenie." Newt nodded to the two girls respectively, before pulling out a chair to sit beside Percival. "Hi, Percy." He added, smiling gently at the other boy. Newt knew from experience that when Percival was in a bad mood it was best to be patient and not push him.

"Hello Newt." Percival said, but he didn't look at him, instead he continued glaring at the mashed potatoes on his plate as though they had somehow committed a horrible crime. Newt sighed and turned to talk to the Goldstein sisters.

"How were classes, Tina? Did I miss anything?" Newt asked, as an invisible server brought a plate of food and a glass of water over to him. That still unnerved him, but Tina had insisted it was just simple levitating charms cast by the kitchen staff, and not some sort of invisible creature forced to serve them. Like the house-elves, or the thestrals that they used at Hogwarts.

"Not a thing." Tina said, offering him a knowing smile.

"Um, okay." Newt said, confused and slightly concerned. Tina always became annoyed and exasperated when Newt missed class and came to her to learn the material he missed.

Tina just laughed and returned to her dinner.

"So- um. Queenie. How are- um, classes?" Newt asked the other Goldstein sister awkwardly. He liked Queenie well enough, but they didn't have a lot in common. Not to mention she had an irritating habit of reading his mind.

"Oh, they're going nicely, thank you for asking. How's your little blue bird-thing?" She asked, casually picking out his most recent memories. Newt sighed.

"It's called a Woden, and it's fine. Please stop doing that." He told her, for what was probably the fiftieth time.

"Oh, sorry about that." Queenie said.

"I understand, but please, just try to remember." Newt asked, feeling a bit guilty.

He knew Queenie wasn't doing it to be mean or intrusive, that she often couldn't help but read the thoughts spilling from people's heads, but that didn't make it okay.

"What's a Woden?" Tina cut in, "I've never heard of those."

"Their scientific name is _Sialia magicae_. They're related to the non-magical Eastern Bluebird, and they happen to be extremely common in North America." Newt explained.

"What makes it magical?" Tina asked distractedly, trying to grab her plate of food when it started to float back to the kitchens.

"They have small elephant trunks that allow them to extract people's memories." Newt answered, and Queenie and Tina suddenly turned to stare at him like he was insane.

"They what?" Tina asked.

"They have trunks like elephants instead of beaks. And they use them to extract people's memories." Newt repeated.

"What do they do with the memories?" Queenie asked, reasonably.

"No one's really sure, there hasn't been a lot of research done on it. There is a theory that they feed off the memories. However, they don't seem to need memories to survive, so who knows." Newt said, shrugging his shoulders. "But, did you know that Wodens were once used to extract bad memories and help people who had suffered trauma?"

"I didn't know they existed until two minutes ago," Tina pointed out.

"Ah, yes. Well, they did. It didn't work though, because no one could actually control the memories that the Wodens extracted." Newt added, awkwardly.

"And you rescued one of these?" Percival spoke up suddenly from his other side, startling Newt enough to knock over his glass of water.

"Um, yes." Newt said, blushing furiously as he grabbed a napkin to clean up the water.

"And where, pray tell, are you keeping this creature? Because last I checked you had kneazle under your bed, a chicken egg that may or may not contain a basilisk in your sock drawer, and a jar of fire beetles in your suitcase."

"It is a chicken egg! I'm not stupid enough to keep a basilisk egg in my room! That would be an extremely hostile environment for a basilisk and it would most certainly die!" Newt protested, and managed to knock over Queenie's glass as well. "Sorry." He muttered to her.

Queenie just shook her head and vanished the drinks with a wave of her wand.

"Newt. Where. Did you put. The creature." Percival repeated slowly, starting to suspect the location of Newt's latest pet, and desperately hoping he was wrong.

"Imighthaveputitunderyourbedimreallyreallysorry." Newt stammered, shrinking away from Percival's glare.

Percival groaned and put his head in his hands.

"I'm sorry." Newt offered, looking guilty. Percival glanced up at him and sighed.

"How do I take care of it?" Percy asked, resigned.

Newt visibly brightened and leaned over to wrap him in a hug.

"Thank you, Percy! Thank you so much! You're going to love Hermes! He's the sweetest thing, don't worry, I doubt he'll try and steal your memories!" Newt promised.

"He won't what now?" Percival demanded, but Newt had already stood up and was dragging Percival upstairs to meet "Hermes".

Tina and Queenie waved happily after them when Percival shot them a pleading look over is shoulder.

"Have fun!" Tina called after them, and Queenie burst into a fit of giggles.

"Isn't he beautiful?" Newt asked, cooing over the tiny blue bird in his hands. Percival sat beside him on the floor, watching Newt's sunny smile as he cared for the creature.

"Yeah, he sure is." Percival muttered. Newt turned his wide blue eyes on him.

"You really like him?" He asked.

"Um, yeah. He's really… unique." Percival replied, awkwardly. In truth, the creature made him very uncomfortable, with its beady black eyes that seemed to be staring into his soul. Or maybe he was just paranoid.

Newt nodded and stroked the bird's feathers, completely enthralled with the small animal. Percival couldn't help but smile at Newt's love and dedication to such a strange and potentially dangerous creature.

"So... How do I care for him?' Percival asked hesitantly.

"Oh! Right! Well, he should be fine most of the day, just make sure he doesn't escape or get stepped on. Maybe pick him up and pet him every now and then. I'm going to do some research on what to feed him, so I'll let you know. I'll also come check up on him every day to tend to his wing." Newt said, not taking his eyes off the bird.

"Okay. And I'm guessing we should probably keep this a secret, right?" Percival said, and Newt nodded frantically.

"No one else can know, or they'd take Hermes away." He said, sounding slightly panicked. Percival reached out and placed a steadying hand on his shoulder.

"Don't worry, no one will find out." Percival said, willing Newt to believe him. Newt studied him for a second before letting out a breath and nodding.

"Find out what?" A voice asked suddenly from the doorway. Both Newt and Percival swiveled around to see one of Percival's roommates leaning casually against the doorjamb.

Newt fumbled to hide the bird under the bed, shooting Percy a terrified look. Percival gave him a warning glance to be quiet, before standing up to greet the newcomer.

"That's none of your business, Jasper." He responded coldly.

Jasper Grant, a fellow fourth year Horned Serpent with a mean streak and a penchant for troublemaking. He was clever and ruthless, someone who wouldn't hesitate to blackmail Newt, or even Percival if he thought it would benefit him.

Jasper smirked and lifted his hands in mock surrender.

"Of course not. But I just want to let you know that if this becomes a regular thing, I'll be forced to go to the Head of House." He said, with a sly look. Percival rolled his eyes and tried not to hit his roommate. "After all, bringing your date back to the dorm is strictly against the rules, last I checked."

Behind him, Percival heard Newt gasp and sputter at the accusation. For his part, Percy kept his expression carefully neutral. Jasper thought they were dating. That meant he must not have seen the creature after all.

"Indeed. But last I checked, brewing hallucinogenic potions in the greenhouse toolshed and selling them to other students is also against the rules." Percival mused, casually stepping into Jasper's personal space. "Hopefully you can find it in your heart to keep silent. Or I'll be forced to go to the Head of House as well." Percival said, his voice bland and his eyes hard as flint.

Jasper glared, knowing Percival had cornered him. The two of them stood locked in a staring contest for several seconds, before Jasper glanced away and took a step back. He expression was one of fury, and his eyes flickered over Percival's shoulder to Newt's small form, still sitting on the floor and wringing his hands nervously. A cruel light lit up in Jasper's eyes when he turned back to Percival.

"Alright, you got me there." Jasper admitted easily. He leaned closer to Percival, and lowered his voice a little. "Keep an eye on that one thought, yeah? Hear he tends to get himself into trouble quite often." Jasper said, and stepped away, his smile a little too deliberate for Percival's taste. "Good evening, Percy. Newt." Jasper said, politely inclining his head to them and turning to leave.

Percival watched him go, promising to himself to keep an eye on his mischievous roommate. It was hard to tell with Jasper, since he always seemed sinister, but that was almost certainly a threat.

Percival turned back to Newt, who was curled up beside the bed, clutching Hermes and stroking the bird's head anxiously.

"He didn't see Hermes, don't worry." Percival promised, sitting down beside Newt.

"I know, I just—I'm..." He huffed out a breath and ducked his head, his strands of curly brown hair falling over his eyes so Percival couldn't read his expression.

"You're what?" Percival asked.

"I'm sorry to be causing you so much trouble." Newt murmured.

"Don't be silly." Percival grumbled, and pulled Newt into a hug. "You always cause trouble, it's part of your charm. Besides, it's nothing I can't handle." He promised.

Newt laughed half-heartedly and leaned against his friend, still cuddling Hermes in his hands.

"I don't deserve you." He whispered, too quietly for Percy to hear, but if he had, he most certainly would have disagreed.

"Percy. Can I talk to you?" Tina asked.

Percival, who was sitting at a table in the library, fully immersed in his text books studying for an upcoming Transfiguration exam, did not look up as he addressed her.

"I believe you already are." He said, flipping the page.

"Good, because I have to tell you something." Tina replied, pulling up a chair.

She had finally snapped. After months of watching the two of them dance around each other, Tina had finally decided to do whatever it took to get Percival and Newt to confess they're feelings. Honestly, at this point it was just painful to watch the longing looks, pained smiles, and aborted confessions. They were her friends, and she wanted them to be happy.

So, even though it went against her general rule of staying out of other people's love lives, she and Queenie had made a plan to get the two idiots together. Unfortunately, Tina got the fun job of convincing Percival Graves to do the one thing he would never do under any circumstances. Talk about his feelings.

When exactly had Tina become a therapist?

Queenie got the easier job of talking to Newt, who, while not exactly an open book, was relatively easy to read when he was hiding something. Especially if you're a Legilimens, like Queenie. Normally, one would think it would make sense for Queenie to be the one to interrogate Percy, but apparently he was surprisingly good at Occlumency.

"First, tell me why you won't talk to Newt." Tina said. Percival sighed and slammed his book shut.

"Not this again. Leave it, Goldstein. It's none of your business." He snapped, packing his books into his bag and standing up, but Tina grabbed his arm before he could leave.

"Sit down, Percival Graves. We're not done here. If you won't talk, fine, at least listen." Tina said. Scowling, Percival sat down again.

"What do you want?"

"He loves you." Tina replied flatly, jumping straight to the point.

"I know that!" Percival snarled, earning a few withering glares from the few other students in the library. "You think I don't know that? He's my best friend, I know him better than you, believe it or not." He hissed, quieter this time.

"Then why?" Tina asked, refusing to back down.

His anger seemed to diminish at that, replaced with an irritated exhaustion that left him looking much, much older than he was. His dark eyes that were usually piercing and full of fire, were now flat and resigned.

"He loves me." Percy said, with a bitter twist to his mouth. "He loves me and he's- Newt. He's amazing and sweet and adorable and caring… and he doesn't expect anything from me. He loves me, even when I make mistakes, even when I'm angry, or distant… Do you know what that's like? To have someone love you no matter what?"

"Yes." Tina said softly, and Percy nodded.

"I can't lose him, Tina." He said. Tina placed a comforting hand on his shoulder.

"I know. But honestly Percy, you already love him. No matter what you do, losing him would hurt. You can't spare yourself the pain by pushing him away. Isn't it a bit too late for that?"

"Probably." Percival admitted. "That doesn't make it easier."

Tina just nodded and gave him a sympathetic smile.

Percival sighed and seemed to pull himself together. The vulnerability in his expression disappeared, replaced with false neutrality. "Thank you, Tina. I'll think about what you've said. I-I appreciate what you're to do. You're a good friend." He said, and for a moment, Tina could hear the sincerity in his voice.

"I know." She said, and Percy shot her a dry look.

"So modest. Well, as fun as this little heart-to-heart has been, I need to go check up on Hermes. He gets upset if I don't feed him every three hours." He muttered, and stood up to leave.

"Aww, you've gotten attached to it haven't you Percy." Tina snickered. Percival just rolled his eyes and walked away, but she still caught the hint of a smile tugging on his lips.

"Good morning Newt." A soft voice interrupted his thoughts, drawing him away from his Transfiguration textbook. Newt looked up and smiled at Queenie.

"Morning Queenie. How are you?" He asked politely.

"I'm quite well, thank you." She said, sitting down in the comfy red chair opposite him. Newt bit his lip and smiled again, before refocusing on his homework. Queenie didn't say anything, she just continued watching him, and probably reading his mind.

"What do you think of Percival?" She asked suddenly.

Newt's head snapped up and he tried to stop the immediate cascade of thoughts in his mind. Queenie just stared at him, inscrutable.

"Why do you want to know?" He asked, still politely, but with an edge of defensiveness.

"Because he loves you." She said.

"Stop it." Newt snapped, leaning forward suddenly. "I don't want to know all the things you pluck from people's heads without their permission. Queenie, I'm not trying to be mean, but you need to stop doing that."

"I didn't get that from his mind. I didn't need to, it's extremely obvious." Queenie said with a beatific smile.

"What do you mean?"

"It's obvious. Everyone can see it, not just mind readers. Even Tina could see it." She pointed out.

"Yes, I know. She's been trying to convince me to talk to him for ages." Newt muttered.

"Exactly. So why _can't_ you talk to him?" She asked, and Newt buried his head in his hands.

"Not again. Why can't you all just leave me alone?" He groaned.

Queenie sighed and rubbed her temples. All the other voices in the student lounge we starting get to her. Usually she was better about tuning them out, but concentrating on not reading the thoughts pouring out of Newt's mind was challenging enough.

"Newt. It's okay to be scared. It's normal to fear rejection, but don't let that fear stop you from being happy."

"What makes you think I'm not happy now? What if I'm perfectly content? His friendship is better than nothing, and believe me, I've thought about this. I could spend the rest of my life with only his friendship, and I could still be the happiest person in the world! Because yes Queenie, I love him. And being around him, enjoying his company, is more than enough. I only had one friend at Hogwarts, and we ended up no longer talking to each other because I loved her and she didn't love me back. I pushed her, and she left." Newt said, his eyes burning with unshed tears.

"That's not true, and you know it. She betrayed you." Queenie whispered.

"Stop reading my mind." Newt said, half-heartedly.

"It's hard not to when you're pushing all your memories at me."

"Yes, she betrayed me. But we weren't friends when she did. She had stopped talking to me weeks before that. I'm not saying what she did wasn't wrong, I'm just saying I'm not completely guiltless either."

Queenie suddenly stood up and walked over to Newt's chair, shuffling him aside and sitting beside him.

"You're not wrong for loving her. She was wrong for taking advantage of your love." Queenie said, wrapping Newt in a tight hug.

"She almost killed someone. And she blamed it on me. And I still took the fall for her." He whispered.

"I know. You are loyal to a fault, Newt Scamander. But you need not worry, you have new friends now. You can trust us." Queenie promised.

"Hermes, I brought breakfast!" Percival called, and immediately felt like an idiot for talking to a bird. He'd had the thing for less than a week and he was already treating it like a pet.

Percival sighed and knelt down next to the bed to lift up the quilt. Newt had said Hermes wouldn't be healthy enough to go back into the wild for another month or so, meaning that until then Percy was stuck brining it food three times a day and making sure it didn't "accidentally" steal anyone's memories.

"Hermes, food. Where are you, birdy?" He called again, setting the plate of fruit on the floor. Usually Hermes came running as soon as he heard Percival calling him, but there was no sign of the small blue creature.

Frowning, Percival bent down to peer under the bed, and though Hermes' nest of blankets was still there, the bird itself was not.

"No. No, no, no, no, no!" He muttered, rifling through the blankets and coming up empty-handed. Percival whirled around and started searching under his roommate's beds, but all he found were suitcases and unwashed socks.

"Damn it!" He swore, running his hands angrily through his hair. Hermes could have been anywhere in the school at this point. Finding it would be near impossible, what with all the secret floors and hidden passageways spread throughout the castle.

"Newt. I have to get Newt." Percival decided, and stormed out of the dorms.

He stalked down the stairs, running through the list of possible places Newt could be. Most likely in the student's lounge. He always went there to study, because apparently, the background noises of people talking helped him concentrate. He told Percival once that the complete silence of the library was unnerving, something Percy himself never understood.

Percival walked as quickly as he could down the halls without drawing attention. Newt was going to kill him, he was certain. Newt had trusted him to take of one of his precious creatures, and he had failed. He had failed Newt.

Percy roughly pushed aside his guilt. Now was not the time. He shook his head and entered the student lounge, glancing around for Newt. When he finally caught sight of him, his heart started beating faster in his chest. Then he noticed Queenie Goldstein sitting beside him, her arms wrapped around him like a squid, and the bottom dropped out of his stomach. Newt was laughing with the younger Goldstein sister, giving her the unrestrained smile he usually reserved for his creatures and Percy.

Jealousy rose up in him like a wave, leaving a horrible, bitter taste in his mouth. Why he cared, Percival didn't know. Newt was allowed to have friends besides him, it wasn't like he had a monopoly on Newt.

Still, Queenie was smiling back at Newt with one arm draped across his shoulders, practically sitting in his lap. Percival grit his teeth and went over to them.

Newt and Queenie looked up as he walked over, their smiles fading when they saw the grim look on his face.

"Percy? Is everything… okay?" Newt asked tentatively. Percival bit the inside of his cheek and steeled himself to face Newt's disappointment. He only hoped Newt could eventually learn to forgive him.

"I- Yes. I'm so sorry Newt, I- I lost Hermes." Percy admitted, staring at the ground so he wouldn't see the betrayed look on his friend's face.

"That's not true. You went up to feed him and he was missing. It's not your fault." Queenie interjected. Percival immediately put up his mental shields, glaring at Queenie and cursing himself for forgetting to keep on his guard.

"Stay out of my head, Goldstein." He snapped.

"It's alright," Newt said, "I'm sure he just wandered off, it's not a big deal. Wodens don't like to be kept in one place for too long, they prefer to travel and explore. That was probably my fault for not taking him outside every now and then."

Percival frowned, looking simultaneously doubtful and relived. Relived that Newt wasn't mad at him, and doubtful that Hermes had just "wandered off".

"Honestly Percy, it's fine! Stop worrying, we'll go look for him. It shouldn't be too difficult, Wodens enjoy open spaces to fly, so it's unlikely he's hiding in a dark corner somewhere." Newt promised with a kind smile.

"Don't worry, we'll find him. I'll go find Tina and we'll help you look, yeah?" Queenie suggested, as she stood up and stretched.

"You're both very calm about this." Percival noted.

"Of course. He's a magical creature Percy, he's got nothing to fear from a few underage wizards. If anything, the students have more to fear from Hermes, considering he could swoop in and steal their memories at any second." Newt said, presumably to reassure them.

Percival and Queenies stared at him with identical looks of horror.

"What?" He asked, bewildered by their expressions. "Oh." Newt bit his lip when he realized the implications of what he had said. "We should probably find him as soon as possible."

"I'll go get Tina." Queenie spun around and hurried away.

"Where could he have gone?" Percival asked, turning back to Newt, who now looked extremely worried.

"I- I don't know. Oh dear. Percy, what if hurts somebody? When a Woden steals someone's memory it's irreversible. What if he hurts someone? I'll get expelled! Percy, I can't get expelled again!" Newt whimpered, looking up at him with wide, terrified eyes.

Percival had never heard the full story of how Newt had gotten expelled from his last school, but he gathered that it had not been pleasant and that it had involved someone getting seriously injured. Percy frowned and stepped closer to Newt, cupping his face in his hands.

"Hey. Newt, look at me." Newt lifted his frightened blue eyes to Percival's calm brown ones. "It will be okay. This is a creature we're talking about, you know everything there is to know about creatures, we will figure this out." He promised, willing Newt to believe it.

Newt made a skeptical noise, but he looked slightly less pale.

"We will find him, and it will be fine. Okay?" Percy asked. Newt hesitated to answer, clearly not convinced.

He studied Percy, maintaining eye contact in a very un-Newt-like way. Percival held his breath, caught between hoping that Newt could trust him, and hoping he would actually be able to keep his promise. Finally, Newt let out a slow sigh and nodded.

"Alright."

"Good. Then let's go find Hermes."

The four students spread out across the castle, searching high and low for any sign of blue feathers. Queenie and Tina took the west wing, Newt and Percy took the east. Luckily, most other students were outside on the grounds, relaxing, studying and enjoying the nice weather for the weekend, so the castle was almost empty.

 _Less chances for casualties_ , Percival thought grimly, as he fell into step with Newt.

"Where do you think we should start?" He asked Newt.

"The aviary, perhaps? Maybe he's roosting with the owls?"

"Are Wodens social creatures?" Percy asked practically.

"Um, I- I don't know…" Newt stuttered, looking guiltily at the floor. Percival sighed and grabbed Newt's arm, coaxing him to a stop. "What?"

Percy ignored his question and pulled him into a hug. He wrapped his arms around Newt's waist and pressed their foreheads together. Newt inhaled sharply, tense for a second, before relaxing into the embrace. He closed his eyes and listened to Percival's calm, even breaths.

"We will find him." Percy whispered. Newt nodded silently and rested his head against Percy's shoulder.

They stood like that for several heartbeats, before a loud chittering sound echoed through the corridor. Newt's head shot up and he ducked out of Percy's embrace, his eyes wild and hopeful.

"It's Hermes!" Newt announced, and took off after the sound. Percy cursed and ran after him.

"Hermes!" Newt shouted, careening down the hall so quickly he tripped and almost fell, but Percy caught his arm and hauled him upright. The two of them ran as fast as they could, Hermes' chirps getting louder and louder.

They rounded the corner and stumbled into the greenhouse attached to the back side of the castle. Newt shoved open the doors, glancing around for any flash of blue in the mass of green plants.

"Hermes! Where are you!" Newt called, stepping around a flutterby bush and staring up at the wide, domed glass ceiling.

Percival wandered around, looking and listening for the bird, but the greenhouse was strangely silent. The magical plants were all clumped together, spilling from their pots onto the walkways, and making it very difficult to move through the building.

"Hermes!" Newt shouted again, and let out a high-pitched whistle. A few chirps echoed in response, coming from the other end of the greenhouse. Newt grinned and leapt after the sound, narrowly avoiding a vine that started reaching for him and disappearing into the jungle of magical, possibly deadly plants.

"Newt!" Percy let out a frustrated groan and followed him, trying not to shudder when leaves and vines attempted to wrap around his arms and legs. _Who decided putting dangerous plants in here was a good idea anyway_ , he wondered as he very nearly knocked over a mandrake pot.

Finally, he stumbled out onto the sidewalk again, covered in dirt and leaves, and probably poisonous sap. Still, he couldn't bring himself to worry about it when he took in the sight before him.

Newt was standing stock still, his face pale and worried, and his hands held out in a placating gesture. And standing before him, holding a cage containing a tiny blue bird, was none other than Jasper Grant. Because of course it was Jasper.

Percival grit his teeth, he should have realized he would do something like this. Standing behind Jasper like angry bodyguards, were three other students who Percy recognized as Jasper's friends. Wonderful.

Percival stepped forward, positioning himself between his roommate and Newt.

"What are doing?" He asked coldly. Jasper hummed thoughtfully and offered them an amused smirk.

"I kidnapped your boyfriend's horrible pet, obviously. Honestly Graves, I thought you were clever." Jasper said with mocking disappointment.

"And I thought you wouldn't be stupid enough to actually carry out your threats. Clearly, we were both wrong. Care to explain why you felt the need to steal one of Newt's creatures?" Percy asked.

"One of his creatures? He has more? What a freak." Jasper said with disdain.

Percival took a threatening step forward, blood boiling in his veins. Looks like he was about to be down one roommate. How unfortunate.

Newt rested his hand on Percy's arm in an attempt to calm him, but Percival shrugged him off.

"Give back the bird. Now." Percival growled, sliding his wand out of his pocket.

"No, I don't think I will. See, I quite liked you Graves. You're cold-blooded and ruthless, and I respect that. But, then you had to go and threaten me, and well… I can't have you undermining me. I figured this would be the most effective way of getting your attention." Jasper said, holding up the cage with a smug smile. He pulled out his wand, aiming it at Hermes, and Newt let out a strangled whimper.

Without so much as the slightest hesitation, Percy flicked his wand, casting a non-verbal stunning spell and sending his roommate tumbling to the ground.

Newt lunged forward to catch Hermes' cage and keep him from smashing to the floor. Percival snatched Newt's wand from the ground and tossed it to him.

Jasper's friends instantly leapt into action, firing off spells that Percival easily blocked. Newt cast a shielding charm around Hermes and ran to help, sending a few creative curses at their attackers.

The air was quickly filled with wayward spells, and several of the nearby plants were caught in the crossfire. The herbology professor would certainly have something to say about that, but none of the students seemed to care at the moment.

Newt managed to hit one of Jasper's friends with a sleeping spell, and he dropped like a rock. Percy paused for a second to admire the look of triumph on Newt's face, and would have been hit by a body bind curse if Newt hadn't thrown up a shielding charm to protect him. Percival offered him a sheepish smile, and Newt shot him an amused look before turning back to the fight.

At some point, Jasper had shaken off the stunning spell and came at Percival with a vengeance. Soon, the two of them were locked in a full-blown duel, furiously casting and dodging spells. Newt finished off the other two students, easily putting them to sleep and levitating them away from the duel so they wouldn't get hurt.

Percival was casting spells as fast as he could think them, and Jasper matched him, tossing charms, spells, and even, Percy suspected, illegal curses his way.

Beads of sweat traced down his temple, and his arms ached as he made short, lightning quick movements. Jasper's eyes were furious, narrowed and focused intently on Percy. Then, for the barest second, Jasper's gaze flickered in Newt's direction.

Percival knew what Jasper was going to do only moments before it happened.

Jasper sent a powerful shielding spell Percy's way, trying to knock him off balance, before whirling around to send a curse at Newt. Newt, taken aback by the sudden change, barely had time to lift his wand to block the spell. Then Percy was there, protecting him, pushing Newt out of the way and casting a counter-curse to stop Jasper.

The spell hit Jasper in the chest, knocking him down and sending his wand skittering away. Percy exhaled, dropping his arm to his side. Jasper was on his hands and knees, gasping for breath and looking ill.

Percival marched over to him, anger still simmering in his blood. He hauled Jasper upright by his collar and aimed his wand at Jasper's throat.

"Percy!" Newt called out, alarmed. Percival ignored him.

"If you value your life. Never. Threaten. Newt. Again." He hissed.

Jasper nodded quickly, for once not looking smug or amused, his eyes wide with terror.

"From now on, I'll leave you alone, if you leave us alone. Yeah?" Percival said, pressing the tip of his wand sharply against Jasper's neck.

He inhaled sharply and nodded again. Percy, satisfied, released him. Jasper clutched his chest and tried to recover, before turning to flee the greenhouse.

Once Jasper was gone Percy sank to the ground, exhausted. Newt wandered over and sat down beside him, wrapping an arm around his shoulders. Percival slumped against him.

"Thank you." Newt murmured.

"Don't mention it."

"You didn't have to do that, you know." Newt said, and Percival snorted.

"Really? Would you rather I had just stood there and let him curse you into oblivion?"

"No, but- You know what I meant. You didn't have to help with Hermes, or pull me out of trouble. Again." Newt said.

"Of course I did, you idiot, I love you." Percival huffed, and when he realized what he had said, he froze.

"You… what?" Newt asked, sitting up suddenly to look at him fully.

"I—" Percival started to speak, then thought: _Oh to hell with it,_ and kissed him.

Newt didn't react for several seconds, long enough for Percy to start to pull away, heart sinking with disappointment, and kicking himself for taking such a risk. Then, Newt grabbed the front of his shirt, dragged him forward, and kissed him back with a surprising ferocity.

It felt like a thousand butterflies were taking off in Newt's stomach at that moment, and he thought that if he were dreaming, he never wanted to wake up. He moved until he was practically sitting in Percy's lap, and when Percy tugged him closer he knew he wasn't dreaming, because his dreams were never this good. A million questions were flitting through his mind, doubts and worries piling up, quickly ruining the best moment of his life thus far.

Eventually, Newt found the willpower to pull away and tried to form a coherent sentence. Percy watched him closely, his dark brown eyes looking guarded.

"Are you sure about this?" Newt asked finally.

"What? Oh, for god's sake—" Percival rolled his eyes and pulled out his wand again. " _Expecto Patronum!"_

This time, casting the spell was easier. The warm, content feeling was already settled in his chest, and it took little to no effort to create a glowing silver Patronus.

"What…" Newt trailed off as he watched the Patronus swim through the air above them. "Is that?"

"A newt." Percy admitted, a faint blush spreading across his face. Newt turned to look at him with an expression of startled delight.

"Really?" He asked.

"Yeah. Look, Newt… you're my best friend. I know you love your creatures, and I know you don't really like people, and I know you have a tendency to attract trouble, and I love you. I love when you talk about your creatures, really, I could listen to you talk about the things you love every day for the rest of my life. I love following you on your adventures, and I love that you're always kind to everyone, even though you don't always understand them. And I know you think you don't have real friends, that we're going to suddenly leave you, but I promise we won't. I won't. I love you, and yes, I'm sure."

Newt had listened to Percy's speech, his blue eyes wide with shock, and his face flushed with pleasure. When Percival had finally stopped talking, Newt leaned forward and kissed him again.

"I love you too." He murmured against Percy's lips. Percy grinned and held him tighter, determined to never let go.

"Oh my god! What did you do?!" Tina shrieked, staring at the pile of unconscious students, the singed and damaged plants, and the two idiots sitting in the middle of it, making out.

"About damn time." Queenie muttered, and from his cage Hermes chirped in agreement.


End file.
